Left side of kilt that tends to 'open'

[Alain MARION]

Hi,

I have a little issue with one of my kilts and would appreciate suggestions.

The kilt fits me perfectly, but for whatever reason the first pleat on the left side keeps 'opening' slightly at the bottom, instead of 'wrapping' the side of my leg just above the knee. This is a heavyweight wool kilt, but this particular pleat is not very deep at the bottom, contrary to my other kilts that don't show this type of problem.

I have ironed the pleats on the left side in an attempt to correct the situation, but this little problem persists.

Any idea of what might work?

Thanks in advance!

Alain

[Riverkilt]

Could you share the maker of the kilt and the cost? With just the info you gave would guess its an inexpensive kilt made in a factory rather than a hand sewn kilt, or a custom sized machine sewn kilt.

In my experience with the same "problem" its only been with inexpensive kilts.

[Barb T]

First thing to check is whether there's any flare at the bottom of the apron. Is the left edge of the apron pressed parallel to the tartan? Unless the hips and waist measurement for a kilt are the same (which doesn't happen all that often), the left edge of the apron below the bottom of the fell should be pressed in a smooth flare (not straight, but slightly curved). See, for example, this kilt that I made for Rex Tremende - you'll see that the left apron edge is not pressed parallel to the tartan but has a nice flare:



If yours is pressed straight, open the apron edge out and steam the crease out. Put the kilt on, and see where it "wants" to fold, pin to mark it, and baste the edge. Then press it.

You can also re-make the flare if the apron edge is already pressed in a flare but the crease doesn't seem to be in the right place. The flare that a kiltmaker puts in the apron is a best guess. If I'm making a kilt for someone who can actually try it on before I'm done, I baste the apron edge but don't press it when I press the rest of the kilt. Then I put it on the person, see where the apron wants to fold, mark, baste, and press.

Having said all this, some body shapes cause the first pleat to open up, and there's only a limited amount that you can do about it. If you have chubby or muscular thighs, your circumference below the bottom of the fell will be slightly more than the circumference at the bottom of the fell. That will cause the pleats to pull and open up a little. Again, re-pressing the apron edge can help, but try having someone actually baste the flare while you have the kilt on. Then press. Depending on your body shape, you may just be stuck with the opening first pleat.

[Dale-of-Cedars]

I have the same issue with my B&S Casual, but I'm not upset about it.
I've been considering changing the angle of the pleat slightly, pinning/basting, and re-pressing.

[cmcbeth]

I have the same thing happening with my new (and only) kilt...wan't sure if this was normal or not. Interesting to see this thread. (15 oz D.C. from Scotweb). I'll have to see if I can find someone locally to take a look at it.
thx!

[Alain MARION]

Hi Riverkilt, and thanks for your reply.

I paid $385 for this kilt, so I would not consider it « inexpensive », although I know some kilts cost much more... In my opinion, it is very well made, and the fabric is 16 oz House of Edgar, which is fairly good quality. The kilt was purchased from Bob Chalmers, but I do not believe he made it himself. The issue I described is not really a major flaw... in fact, it is rather minor... so I don't want to send the kilt back to Scotland. It's just that I like things to be « perfect » ... and whenever I wear this kilt, I tend to focus on this little thing !

Alain

[Alain MARION]

Barb, thank you VERY much for taking the time to write such a detailed explanation. I will see if I can put your expert advice into practice. Merci beaucoup!

Alain